Feeding mechanism for sewing-machines.



J. E. CHALMAN. FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, I9I3- I Patented Mar. 27, 1917 3 SHEEIS-SHEEI' I.

J. E. CHALMAN. FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, I9I3- Patented Mar. 27, 191/.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

f III IIIIIII J I I I:

l I a] 2 J. E. CHALMANL FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 24. I913- Patented Mar. 27, 1917 3 $HEETSSHEEI' 3.

i: ll 41;

JOHN E. CHALMAN, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR 'IO UNION SPECIAL MACHINE COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

FEEDING MECHANISM FOR SEWING-MACI-IIN ES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 27, 1917..

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN E. CHALMAN, a citizen of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county of (look, State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Feeding Mechanisms for Sewing-Machines, of which the following is a description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing and to the figures of reference marked thereon.

The invention relates to new and useful improvements in feeding mechanisms for sewing machines, and more particularly to the upper feed dog and the mechanism for supporting and operating the same, whereby an upperply of fabric may be fed positively' in unison with the lower ply of fabric engaged by the main feed dog.

An object of the invention is to provide a feeding mechanism of the above type with a feed dog which is so supported that it moves bodlly up and down with the presser foot, as the thickness of the material varies,

so that the feeding surface of the feed dog is maintained in a substantially horizontal plane for all positions of the feed dog.

A further object of the invention is to provide a feed dog of the above character with two supporting points capable of moving up and down with the presser foot as the thickness of the fabric or material operated upon varies, together with yielding means for holding the feed dog in contact with said supporting points and to also provide a reciprocating means for the feed dog which permits said feed dog to move rela- 1 tive to its reciprocating means bodily, thus producing what might be termed an upper floating feed dog.

These and other objects will in part be obvious, and will in part be hereinafter more fully disclosed.

In the drawings, which show by way of illustration one embodiment of the invention,

Figure 1 is an'end elevation of a sewing machine having my improvements applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a front View of the forward end of the same;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail view partly in section showing the feed dog and supporting bar there or in side elevation and I an end view of part of the needle head.

Fig. tis a detail in perspective showing f character.

the feed dog and supporting bar therefor, and one of the roller abutments for said feed Fig. 5 is a plan view partly in section showing the feed dog and its relation to the presser I foot;

Fig. 6 is a detail in section showing the main feed dog lowered from engagement with the fabric and the position of the upper feed dog relative to the fabric at this time;

Fig. 7 is a detail in plan and section showing two layers of fabric stitched on my improved machine.

Fig. 8 is a detail transverse sectional view through the presser foot and the upper feeddo is shown in the drawings, my invention is applied to the ordinary sewing machine which includes a work support 1, and an overhanging arm 2, carrying a needle head 3 at its forward end, in which reciprocates a needle bar 4. This needle bar 4 is reciprocated by a needle lever 5 which is connected by a link 6 to the needle bar. dle bar as herein shown is provided with two pairs of needles 7 and 8. The pair of needles 7 are arranged in a line substantially at right angles to the line of feed and slightly in rear of the needles 8, which are also arranged in a line substantially at right angles to the line of feed.

A presser bar 9 is also mounted in the needle head 3, and this presser bar carries a material being stitched and holds the same in contact with the work support in the usual manner. Said presser bar 9 is depressed by a leaf spring 11 of the usual The presser bar may be raised by a lever 12. A second bar 13 is mounted to reciprocate in lugs 14, 14: carried by the needle head, and this part is connected to The neean arm 15 attached to the presser bar 9, so

that the presser bar 9 and the bar 13 will move up and down in their supporting bearings in unison.

The presser foot 10 is formed with needle openings 16 and 17 which receive the needles 7 and 8 respectively. Said presser foot at its forward end is provided with an upturned toe 18. Said presser foot 10 is connected with its supporting shank so that it may have a slight rocking movement in a plane at right angles to the line of feed. Said shank of the presser foot is formed with two spaced arms 19 and 20, which are rigidly attached to the foot proper. Said foot is also provided with a slot 21 which extends from a point adj acent the toe and in advance of the needle openings to a point at the extreme rear edge of the foot.

The upper feed dog 22 is adapted to move back and forth in the slot 21 in the presser foot. This feed dog is provided with serrations or teeth 23. The feed dog 22 is carried by a feed bar 24. This feed bar, as herein shown, is rigid with the feed dog and forms a part thereof. Said feed bar and feed dog are adapted to bear against the roller 25 carried by a stud 26, mounted on the arm 20 and located in the space between the arms 19 and 20. This stud 26 may be adjusted vertically within certain limits and clamped in its adjusted positions by a suitable securing means. The bar 13 at its lower end carries a laterally projecting arm 27, which supports a roller bearing 28, and thefeed bar 24 rests against this roller. The rollers 25 and 28 form abutments against which the feed bar is pressed by a spring 29. This spring is attached at its lower end to a post 30, rigidly fixed to the feed bar, and at its upper end to the arm 15 which extends through the bar 13. The tension of the spring 29 holds the feed bar against said abutments but permits said feed bar tofreely slide back and forth on the abutments, and I have thereby in effect provided a floating feed bar. It will readily be noted that the up and down movements of the presser foot, due to varying thicknesses of material, or for the purpose of inserting the material, will be likewise imparted to the bar 13, and, therefore, the feed bar 24 and the feed dog 22 will move bodily up and down in contact with the two abutments as they move up and down.

The feed bar 24 at its rear end isattached to an arm 31. This arm 31 is carried by a shaft 32 which may be oscillated in any desired way from the main shaft. The arm 31 carries a forked extension 33 at its lower end. The slot 34 in said forked extension loosely engages a stud 35.. The feed bar 24 is formed with spaced perforated lugs 36 between which the forked extension is the vertical slot in said forked extension.

which it is moved downward out of engageg of the needles.

ment with the fabric and returned to its initial forward position.

One of the purposes of the present invention is to provide a feeding mechanism for presenting two layers of fabric or material to a stitching mechanism so that the lines of stitching may be placed through said layers at a point or points adjacent the edge of the upper layer. In Fig. 7 of the drawings I have shown two layers of fabric 38 and 39. The needles 8 form the lines of stitching 40, while. the needles 7 form the lines of stitching 41. In order that these layers of fabric may be properly guided, I have provided the presser foot with an edge guide 42 which is adjustably secured to one of the side edges of the presser foot by a screw 43. This edge guide 42, as clearly shown in Fig. 2, extends underneath or below the lower surface of the presser foot, and the edge of the upper layer of material 39 is adapted to contact with said edge guide, as clearly shown in the drawings. This type of machine is especially adapted for tipping uppers of shoes, in which case the two layers of material may be of leather.

In the operation of my device, the layers of fabric are arranged as above stated, and as they are presented to the feeding mechanism, the feed dogs will clamp and grip said layers and convey the same to the stitching mechanism and through the machine. As clearly shown in Fig. 6 of the drawings, the lower face of the upper feed dog is slightly above the lower face of the presser foot. When the main feed dog is out of engagement with the material said upper feed dog is also free of the material and may be moved toward the front of the machine in position for a feeding movement of the feed dog. When in this position, the lower feed dog being raised against the material will lift the material and bend the same into contact wit-h the upper feed dog and then the movement of the two feed dogs in unison effects the feeding action of the machine. Any movements of the presser foot up or down by varying thicknesses in the material will cause a like bodily movement of the upper feed dog, which is at all times in engagement with the abutments carried by and controlled by the presser foot. Furthermore, the up and down movements of the feed dog are bodily so that in all positions said feed dog is substantially horizontal and presents a faceto the fabric which will engage the fabric or material at the same time in front of the needles as in rear It will thus be seen that whatever may be the initial setting of the upper feed dog relative to the material, this initial setting will be maintained for all horizontal positions of the feedv dog due to the raising or lowering of the presser foot. It will-be noted that the upper face of the feed bar 22 is rounded and the roller 25 is formed with a surface which is curved longitudinally thereof (see Fig. 8). The slot 21, in which the feed dog works, is slightly wider than the upper feed dog, and this permits the presser foot 10 to rock about the pivot pin 10 in a direction transversely of the line of feed. The curved surface of said bar and of the roller will cause a firm contact between the parts when the presser foot is rocked and the pressure of the roller on the feed bar will be in substantially a vertical direction, notwithstanding the fact that-the pressure foot may be slightly tilted.

It will be further noted that when the roller 25 is adjusted by moving the supporting stud 26 therefor, vertically in the slot supporting the same, that the spring 29 will hold the feed bar in contact with the roller and the stud will move in the slot 34 to accommodate the shifting of the bar to the various adjusted positions of the roller. In other words, when the roller is adjusted the feed bar is likewise adjusted, notwithstanding there are two points of support, and the adjustment of one is all that is necessary to accomplish a proper adjustment of the feed bar. This adjustment of the feed bar by the shifting of the roller is comparatively slight, and, therefore, said feed dog will continue to operate in substantially a horizontal plane for all adjustments.

It is obvious that minor changes'in the details of construction and the arrangement of parts may be made without departing from the spiritof the invention, as set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is:

1. A feeding mechanism including in combination a presser foot, a lower feed dog, an upper feed dog, spaced abutments movable with said presser foot for limiting the up ward movement of the upper feed dog, yielding means for holding said upper feed dog in engagement with said spaced abutments,

and means for moving said upper feed dog' back and forth on said abutments.

2. A feeding mechanism including in combination a-p'resser foot, a lower feed dog, an upper feed dog, spaced abutments movable with said presser foot for limiting the upward movement of the upper feed dog, yielding means for holding said upper fee'd dog in engagement with said spaced abutments, means for moving said upper feed dog' back and forth on said abutments, and means whereby said abutments may be simultaneously moved toward. and from the material for varying thicknesses of material.

3. A feeding mechanism including in combination a work support, an upper feed bar,

a feed dog carried thereby, a presser foot,

spaced abutments connected to and movable with said presser foot toward and from the material against which said feed bar is pressed, yielding means for pressing said feed bar against said abutments, and means for reciprocating said feed bar back and forth on said abutments.

4:. A feeding mechanism including in combination a work support, a lower feed bar, an upper feed bar, a feed dog carried thereby, a presser foot, spaced abutments connected to and movable with said presser foot toward and from the material against which said upper feed bar is pressed, yielding means for pressing said upper feed bar against said abutments, and means for reciprocating said upper feed bar back and forth on said abutments.

.5. A feeding mechanism including in combination a lower feed dog, a work support, a presser foot, a roller abutment carried by said presser foot, an upper feed bar, a feed dog carried thereby, a second roller abutment connected to and movable with said presser foot, means for holding said feed bar in contact with said roller abutments, said roller abutments being so disposed that the lower surface of the upper feed dog is above the lower face of the presser foot, and means for moving said feed bar back and forth on said roller abutments.

6. A feeding mechanism including in combination a lower feed dog, a work support, a presser foot, a roller abutment carried by said presser foot, an upper feed bar, a feed dog carried thereby, a second roller abutment connected to and movable with said presser foot, means for holding said feed bar in contact with said roller abutments, said roller abutments being so dis posed that the lower surface of the upper feed dog is above the lower face of the presser foot, an oscillating arm, and a vertical slotted connection between said arm and said feed bar.

7. A feeding mechanism including in combination a work support, a presser foot having a slot extending from a point adjacent the toe of said foot to the rear edge thereof, an upper feed bar having a feed dog located in said slot in the presser foot, a roller abutment carried by the presser foot and engaging the upper face of said feed bar, a second bar movable up and down with the presser foot, an arm carried by said second bar, a roller abutment carried by said combination a work support, a presser foot 11bit having a slot'extending, from a point adjacent the toe of said foot to the rear edgethereof, an upper feed bar having a feed dog located in said slot in the presser foot, a roller abutment carried by the presser foot and engaging the upper face of said feed bar, a second bar movable up and down with, the presser foot, an arm carried by said second bar, a roller abutment carried by said arm, and engaging the upper face of said feed bar, a spring for normally holding said feed bar in engagement with said roller abutments, means for moving said feed bar back and forth, and a lower feed dog cooperating With said upper feed dog.

9. A feeding mechanism including in combination-a work support, a presser foot having a slot extending from a point adjacent the toe of said foot to the rear edge thereof, an upper feed bar havinga feed dog located in said slot in the presser foot, a roller abutment carried by the presser foot and engaging the upper face of said feed bar, a second bar movable up and down with the presser foot, an arm carried by said second bar,-a roller abutment carried by said arm, and engaging the upper face of said feed bar, a spring for normally holding said feed bar in engagement with said roller abutments, an oscillating arm, and a ver tical slotted connection between said arm and said feed bar, whereby said feed bar may be moved back and forth and be permitted to move bodily up and down With the presser foot.

10. A feeding mechanism including in combination a lower feed dog, an upper feed dog, means for moving the upper feed dog back and forth, a presser foot, means for supporting said presser foot, whereby the same may rock sidewise or across the line of feed, said presser foot having fabric engaging faces on each side of the upper feed dog, and a roller carried by the presser foot and engaging the upper feed do for limiting the upward movement thereof.

11. A feeding mechanism including in combination a lower feed dog, and an upper feed dog, means for moving said upper feed dog back and forth, a presser foot, a roller carried by the presser foot, and limiting the upward movement of the upper feed dog, means for supporting the presser foot, whereby the same may rock sidewise or across the line of feed, said roller being provided with a face curved longitudinally of its axis so as to permit the free rocking of the presser foot, and maintain a substantially vertical pressure of the roller against the upper feed dog.

12. A feeding mechanism including in combination, a lower feed dog, an upper feed dog, a feed bar supporting said upper feed dog, a presser bar, a presser foot carried thereby, a guide bar for said presser bar, an abutment carried by the presser foot, an abutment carried by said presser guide bar, said'abutments operating to limit the upward movement of the feed bar for the upper feed dog, and means for yieldingly holding said feed bar in engagement with said abutments.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

- JOHN E. CHALMAN.

Witnesses:

C. MONEIL, A. B. CLoTHmR. 

